Human Design: Authority

How You Were Designed to Make Decisions

Decision Making = Strategy and Authority

Authority is the mechanical way in which you make correct decisions from your body intelligence. It is important to understand that you cannot get to correct authority or decision making without first being correct in your aura strategy (how you are designed to meet life). If your mind is pushing or pulling, trying to get what it thinks it wants, or reacting to pressure from others, remember: first you must go home. Home is your aura. Otherwise, the following section is useless!!!

Authority

“What should I do?” “How do I know?”

Working with your own authority is the second step in Human Design, after understanding your aura. Below we will look at the different authorities, how and where in the body we are designed to make decisions. One is not better than the other; they are all simply mechanical.

There is no way that your mind can understand authority, because it is a vastly different awareness, infinitely more intelligent. Authority is not logical and your mind will rarely, if ever, agree with it. Your mind is incapable of knowing what is correct for you, but through experimentation you can learn to trust your unique authority.

Emotional Authority (Solar Plexus)

When the Solar Plexus is defined in someone’s chart, it means their authority is Emotional. Emotional authority is rooted in feeling rather than thinking. It is not logical and one should never try to explain it. Emotions work in a wave, moving from hope to pain and back again. It is by feeling these movements that emotional authority can be experienced. Emotional authority is slow and should never be rushed. It is an incredibly deep awareness of the environment, like an emotional radar reaching out to FEEL what is good for you. For an emotional being, you must feel the situation or persons over a period of time, from different points in your wave, in order to draw the real truth from it. This is feeling your way through life, and “playing hard to get.” It is a good idea to push people and decisions away for as long as possible. You will never be sure, it will just feel right or not. This is why we say, “There is no truth in the now for the emotional being.” Anytime you start thinking, remember: it is about what you feel, not what you think.

Sacral Authority

Sacral authority is exclusive to the Generator and Manifesting Generator. Sacral authority is response in the now. It is the life force lighting up to be available, or not, for whatever it is responding to. The sacral only speaks in three voices: Ah-huh (yes), Uhn-un (no) and hmmm (no response, hesitation, or no energy available right now.) It is important to hear the sound of your own sacral response (auditory) and to feel (visceral) the opening or the closing of your energy’s availability. It is a very shocking realization to discover that you can know everything about your life through the right questions. Sacral questions are simple yes or no questions. When you see for yourself that your energy and your mind disagree this can be scary. Going against your life force causes frustration and degeneration of your entire body and everything you touch. Being in alignment with your life force by responding from your sacral authority gives you a deep sense of satisfaction and regeneration as your energy is being well used.

Spleen Authority

Spleen authority is exclusive to Manifestors and Projectors. Spleen authority is rooted in survival and is the oldest and most existential awareness. It ties us deeply to our past. Spleen knows nothing other than how to survive right NOW. Splenic awareness flows through the entire lymphatic system of the body like little tongues, noses and ears. It might be experienced as a cat-like sense of total alertness. However, for most people this is the hardest awareness to access, as it is quiet and weak compared to the mind and emotions. The spleen only speaks once and never repeats itself. Most people struggle to truly access this ancient awareness. If ever unclear, return to your aura. That will help ground you.The spleen is basically saying YES until it says NO, and NO can be quite cutting and even violent; however it must be obeyed for your own survival. Over time the spleen can develop and become a visceral light body “hit” feeling, like “this is very healthy;” however, the spleen’s main job is to say NO to anything that endangers your health.

Ego Authority

Ego authority is exclusive to Manifestors and Projectors, and is the rarest of all authorities. Ego authority is rooted in the correct use of willpower. The ego, when properly used, makes a commitment to something that is correct for that being. Ego authority is experienced when you recognize what you say or do when you are not thinking. Ego authority can be heard in the voice or be experienced as the willpower to complete something. Learning to hear your authority in your own voice can be a great way to begin to notice the ego’s true will power. One way to experiment is by talking to friends who will just listen for the ring of truth in your voice, without trying to influence you. Because the mind-driven ego has a way of overpowering everything and everyone in pursuit of what it wants, many people with ego authority have to learn to use this power correctly. It is actually an unlearning or relearning process to master the precise, healthy, and correct use of this force, expressing itself naturally rather than willing itself through life.

G Authority (Self-Projected)

G Authority, exclusive to projectors, is rooted in the expression of the self. This has nothing to do with what a person thinks of as themselves. G authority can be discovered by learning to hear the frequency of the voice when the person is not thinking. The voice will either have a streaming quality, a flowing expression that is unencumbered by mind, or it will not. When a G projector is speaking and feels that its expression is restricted or unclear, this is a sign that either they were not invited, or the mind is trying to influence the stream of information. The G projector begins to recognize itself through interaction with the other. Over time this becomes a visceral awareness, and can be experienced as an opening or pull from inside the chest, as if the self is rising up to meet life and is moving in the correct direction. Becoming comfortable with expressing oneself without censorship by the mind, when invited, is an important part of the evolution for the G authority. Ultimately it is recommended with this authority that you talk about important things in your life with another person to get clear on what your truth is.

Mental Authority (None)

Mental authority, also known as “none” or “environmental,” is exclusive to projectors. The mental authority can be accessed by hearing the truth in one’s own voice after it leaves the body. Life force carries frequency and is discernible when communicated. In this type of projector, all centers below the throat are undefined, and the person receives sensory information about the environment through their open centers. This authority learns to feel in the body what environment is beneficial and SEE who really wants its unique perspective. When it is invited into something larger where a decision is necessary, it is good to step back and talk it through with a listener who will not try to influence the decision. The correct environment will bring the correct people and activities, and a feeling of relaxation in the body.

Lunar Authority

Lunar authority, exclusive to the reflector, is navigated though the movement or transits of the moon, and is in that sense celestial. This is radically different from all the other authorities. With no consistent life force, lunar authority requires a deep understanding of how the planets are bringing energy into the life. There is a pattern, like a song or poem of the life force turning on and off, that must be learned. This pattern repeats itself every 28 to 29 days, so observing this pattern while considering a decision gives many different perspectives. It is only by seeing life through one or more lunar cycle that a reflector can even begin to SEE how these movements change them, so they can have a much deeper relationship with nature and the stars. Environmental awareness is also key here. It is very important that these beings be in the correct physical location as they bring a reflection of their environment to the world. At the end of a cycle or perhaps many cycles, the Reflector can have a sense of clarity about the decision.